In firearms, a safety lock or safety catch is a mechanism used to prevent the accidental discharge of a firearm, helping to ensure safer handling. Firearms (e.g., pistols, rifles, shotguns, machine-guns, etc.) are typically constructed with various designs and parts that may include one or more safety locks. Conventionally, a firing sequence includes a trigger that connects to a firing mechanism that activates a projectile (e.g., bullet) via springs, levers, pins, moldings, etc. A safety lock prevents activation of the projectile, for example, by enabling a locking mechanism in the firing sequence. Typically a locking mechanism can disconnect the trigger from the firing mechanism.
Safety locks are conventionally activated manually such that a user gives input, for example, by toggling a lever on the firearm from “on” to “off” or some other action. Manual safety locks are typically activated by a switch, slide, or lever, such that the manual safety lock prevents the firing of a firearm when manually activated by the user to the “safe” position. Some modern firearms require a user to input a fingerprint or wear a chip every time the firearm is operated to switch the safety lock from off to on.
Increasingly, unauthorized discharges of firearms happen in crowded public places through unintentional and intentional use. Police and security guards conventionally must screen every visitor with metal detectors and/or continually monitor surveillance equipment. For a firearm outside a security checkpoint and undetected through surveillance, the use of the firearm is not easily restricted. And while fingerprint scanners can authenticate a user, modern firearm safety lock authentication fails to restrict use of such firearms in public places, such as a school.
Accidental discharges of firearms also commonly occur in the hands of children. In all too common of a situation, a child may gain access to a firearm, take the firearm to a public place, such as a school, and intentionally or unintentionally discharge the firearm. The unauthorized possession of firearms is conventionally addressed by restricting access. However, once access to a firearm is gained, the use of the firearm is not easily restricted. Manual safety locks fail to stop unauthorized and accidental discharges of firearms in public places. For example, when a child brings a firearm to school, disabling the manual safety lock can be as simple as a flip of the switch.